The Seven-Year Plan
Sustainability is important….plus I like a distinctly cute
pen.
That’s what I was telling myself in The Write Touch back in
Jacksonville when I was looking at this pen by Seltzer Made goods called The
Seven Year Pen. It honestly wasn’t as expensive as some of the ink pens in the
store, (people pay almost $100 for pens?! First world problems…) so I decided
it would be a good investment. But, the whole idea is that it has this huge ink
cartridge so you won’t run out for at least 7 years, thereby reducing your
carbon footprint and creating less plastic waste. What’s the motivation for not
losing it just like any other pen, you ask? It’s really stinking cute. I misplaced
mine the other day and was pretty dismayed. My friend Brian actually bought it for me that
day in the letterpress store, as he was already getting a journal for me as a
going away present. He figured he might as well make it the whole journalistic
package, I guess.
As I was sitting at my desk last week, writing with my pen,
I looked down at it and thought about the pen’s seven year lifespan. I thought
about where we (the pen and I) would be when it finally dotted its last bit of
ink on a page. While I don’t know exactly where I’ll be in seven years, I do
know that I’ll be thirty years old when the pen runs out of ink.
The realization stunned me a bit. Certainly, I don’t own
anything that I’ll still have at thirty. That seems like a lifetime away. It’s
not.
I guess I thought that would scare me a bit more. But, it doesn’t.
Truthfully, I’m okay with that because I have decided to live in the truth that
I can profess things over my life. Not only can I, but I should be. We shouldn’t
treat this life of ours like it’s a leaf blowing in the wind. I know that in
seven years, as far away as this seems today, I will be married. I will have a
great job. I will be happy. I will be at least entertaining the idea of having
children. These are decisions that I’ve had to make.
Obviously, as our life circumstances change, so then do our
desires. For the important things in life, we make room. But, I think it’s
important to note that our circumstances do not define us and they don’t decide
for us. We are gloriously and independently in control of our own lives. Sure,
there are disasters and unforeseen events that pop up in every person’s life.
That doesn’t mean the plan has to change.
So, I have an unabashed seven year plan…..and it’s honestly
far more liberating than it is confining. It’s filled with personal and
professional goals. Would you like to know specifically what they are? That’s
not going to happen. J
After all, this is the internet. I decided to share this because I think it’s
important to note that setting goals and confessing our desires is okay, even
though we might trip up or fail sometimes. Thoughtful prayer and discerning
choices can get us where we want to go. It might take you down a different path
than you wanted to go, but you’ll arrive at the destination and it’ll be better
than what you had in mind.
